May9, 2019

Washington, D.C. – Today, members of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness held a hearing on the Department of Defense’s budget requests for military readiness. Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA), Chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee, made the following statement at the conclusion of the hearing:

“Today’s hearing was essential for assessing readiness needs for the military,” Garamendi said. “The witnesses provided testimony on the current state of military readiness and how the fiscal year 2020 budget request will support military training, weapon systems sustainment, and efforts to meet full spectrum readiness requirements in alignment with the National Defense Strategy.”

“The FY2020 budget request represents a significant increase in defense spending,” Garamendi continued. “I am concerned that the Department of Defense is overly focused on long-term readiness through modernization programs and is not placing enough emphasis on investing in near-term readiness accounts that support training and sustainment of existing weapon systems.”

“We have heard testimony on a range of topics this year including the impacts of climate change on national security, military family housing, surface navy readiness, and the budget request for military installations,” Garamendi said. “Those briefings and hearings have addressed important issues that affect military readiness, but the hearing today was essential in learning about the readiness challenges the military faces, how they plan to combat these challenges, and how the FY2020 budget request supports these efforts.”

“I appreciate the insight and perspective the witnesses and fellow members of the Readiness Subcommittee provided today,” Garamendi concluded.